Activewear brand Lorna Jane is facing another uphill battle over its latest project, an active living room in Sydney airport which offers yoga and pilates classes (at a price).
There are 11 Lorna Jane Active Living Room around Australia, one of which is located at Sydney’s T2 domestic terminal. According to its website, it’s “the ultimate destination for the modern active woman” and gives the chance for modern active women to “believe in your best active life by shopping the most fashionable and functional new activewear”.
Members of the Lorna Jane rewards club can access these facilities for free. At the Sydney airport facility, travellers who are non-members have to pay $12 to join a 45-minute yoga or pilates class.
The president of the Universal Society of Hinduism Rajan Zed has released a press release arguing it is counterintuitive for Sydney airport and Lorna Jane to charge people to practice yoga.
“Sydney Airport should provide yoga space for the passengers without any charge if it was serious to help reduce their stress levels and deliver the claimed ‘world-class passenger experience’.
“Yoga is a world heritage and liberation powerhouse to be utilized by all and charging fee for it at a public facility like Sydney Airport did not seem right. It would be step in the positive direction if Sydney Airport rethinks about the issue and provide a yoga-room to be used by all passengers, staff and visitors for free.”
A Lorna Jane spokesperson told B&T: “The Active Living Room is owned and managed by Lorna Jane, not Sydney Airport. The comments made suggest Sydney airport as a whole should be providing the service for free, so we don’t think it’s appropriate for Lorna Jane to comment. Saying that we welcome anything that encourages travellers to put their health first.
“Please also note that a range of classes are available, not just yoga. Travellers are also welcome to use the space at any time to stretch on their own, completely free of charge.”
This year hasn’t been the best for Lorna Jane Clarkson. She’s currently embroiled in a lawsuit with a former employee who claims she was bullied and harassed by Lorna Jane staff for her weight. In July, an ad with very specific physical measurements for a combined “Receptionist/Fit Model” was attacked for continuing unrealistic size expectations of women. Last month, a Gold Coast woman claimed she was tricked into sending photos of herself to a man who convinced her he was a representative from fitness brand Lorna Jane. A former employee Vanessa Croll published an article claiming Lorna Jane used her photos when she modelled for the brand without prior modelling experience, and was paid minimally.
